Manali : The forest guards in Himachal are also volunteering in the fight against Covid-19 by visiting villages under the jurisdiction of their respective beats.
Kullu forest division has deployed its 37 forest guards, all under 40 years of age, to work under the supervision of district administration and police regarding Covid-19 action plan. As limited police force cannot reach every village, the forest guards are covering every single village one by one. All the forest range officers are coordinating with SHOs in their jurisdiction and issuing further directions to the guards.
The forest guards are interacting with villagers in their respective beats and spreading awareness regarding social distancing, importance of face masks and frequent hand wash. They are also making villagers aware of the latest government guidelines. The forest guards are helping medical teams in keeping a check on people asked to home quarantine. They are gathering information from panchayat representatives on the movement of unknown people.
Kullu divisional forest officer Aishwarya Raj said the forest guards have been trained to spread awareness among the villagers. “They are reaching all the villages, both connected and not connected by road, and interacting with people and clearing their doubts. Feeding the stray dogs has also been started on a pilot basis in two forest ranges of Kullu,” he said.
Sanjay Dutta, an engineer by qualification but is a journalist by choice.
He has worked for the premier new agency Press Trust of India and leading English daily Indian Express.
With more than a decade of experience, he has been highlighting issues related to environment, tourism and other aspects affecting mountain ecology.
Sanjay Dutta lives in a village close to Manali in Kullu valley of Himachal.
